What Happens When Middle Schoolers Build AI — and Take Responsibility for It
Middle school Eagles built real AI apps, debated ethics, and publicly defended their models—learning responsibility in an AI-shaped world.
Field Notes
Blog
135 posts
The Confidence You Want for Your Child Comes From Challenge
Confidence grows when children face meaningful challenges, persist through struggle, and discover they are capable of doing hard things.
Socratic Dialogue - The Art of Asking Better Questions
Socratic discussions at Acton Academy Columbus pair classical dialogue with learner agency to build wisdom, character, and independent thought.
The Skills for 2030 (vs 1990)
The skills employers demand in 2030—creativity, resilience, leadership, and AI literacy—are already being built daily at Acton.
Confidence Isn’t Taught. It’s Built—One Real Challenge at a Time
See how learner-driven projects, collaboration, and public exhibitions help children develop lasting confidence and essential 21st-century skills.
School for the 21st century
Education has evolved from memorization to self-directed learning—now agency is the essential skill that prepares young people to lead in an AI-driven world.
Self-Driven Stories: A WOW Moment Turned Into Reality
What started as a spark became a real project—four Eagles built a table and discovered the power of initiative and belief.
Horses, Kohlrabi, Llamas… Oh My! Learning Comes Alive Outside the Studio
Field trips transform curiosity into courage. From farms to festivals, Eagles learn by doing—discovering that real learning is hands-on, messy, joyful, and unforgettable.
In a world of AI, Agency is the New "Smart"
In a world where AI makes “smart” easy, agency matters most: initiative, courage, ownership, and the power to act.
Unleashing Potential: Gifted Education at Acton Academy
Gifted learners thrive when challenged. Discover how Acton Academy Columbus empowers students through self-paced, project-based, purpose-driven learning.
Session 1 Wrap-Up: Building Community, Skills, and Independence
Eagles explored community, homesteading, and creative projects—building skills, independence, and strong connections through quests, field trips, and guest workshops.
Homesteading Quest
Discovery Studio Eagles explored homesteading, history, and emotional growth—building independence, collaboration, and real-world skills through hands-on quests and meaningful proj
Field Trip to Slate Run Historical Farm
Eagles explored Slate Run Farm, stepping into 1880s life with animals, woodworking, rope-making, and hands-on lessons that brought history alive.
In a World of AI, Standardized Tests Make No Sense
Education is not about what you know. It’s about what you do with it. And even more, it’s about who you become along the way.
Learning to Read in the Montessori Studio
At Acton Columbus, reading begins with phonics, daily writing, and storytime—nurturing confident, joyful readers through hands-on learning.
Our Middle School Apprenticeship at Harrison Farm
Our Adventure Studio Eagles spent four weeks this spring apprenticing at Harrison Farm. This is what school should be. Not just studying life from the sidelines—but living it.
Soggy Socks: Camping Trip to Mohican State Park
Every spring, our Acton Academy Columbus tribe leaves behind devices, desks, and dry shoes for something a little messier and a lot more meaningful—our annual camping trip.
Children's Business Fair: A Day to Remember
A Day to Remember: Our Young Entrepreneurs Take Over Downtown Dublin
Exploring the Real-World Engineering Process: A Field Trip to Roto
At Acton Academy Columbus, hands-on learning is at the heart of everything we do. Our learners don’t just read about science, technology, engineering, and math—they live it.
Waldorf-Inspired: Forest Fridays
Waldorf-inspired Forest Fridays offer joyful, screen-free learning in nature—building confidence, connection, and wonder in every learner.
Finalizing Our Ethos: A Milestone Four Years in the Making
At Acton Columbus, Eagles and Guides live by a shared ethos—built over four years to empower, launch, and grow together.
Why Acton Academy Expects More from Learners
Learners thrive with freedom balanced by responsibility, accountability, and high expectations, fostering growth, collaboration, and excellence.
Guidepost Montessori Closings - Dublin, Powell, Muirfield Village
Guidepost Montessori in Dublin is closing. For families looking to continue Montessori education, we welcome them to tour Acton Academy Columbus.
The Whole Health Quest: A Hands-On Journey to Wellness
Learners explored health through hands-on projects, expert talks, and a Health Fair, gaining real-world wellness skills and ownership of their well-being.
Adventure Studio: Empowering Middle Schoolers to Lead, Learn and Thrive
A transformative space where middle school learners are empowered to embrace their independence, ignite their curiosity, and grow into capable, self-driven individuals.
AI in Education: Embracing Learner-Led Education
Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping every aspect of our lives—from how we communicate to how we work. Education is no exception.
Top 10 Ways our Microschool enhances the homeschooling experience
For homeschooling families, education is more than just academics. It’s about fostering curiosity, and creating lifelong learners.
Joy and Independence: Inside the Growth / Discovery Studios
Empowering learners with agency, joy, and independence, our Growth and Discovery Studios blend creativity, community, and self-directed learning.
Empowering Students Through Agency: Lessons from Peter Hutton
Empowering students to take ownership of their learning fosters autonomy, resilience, and lifelong success in a rapidly changing world.
Research: Happiness is Critical in Education and Success
Happiness fuels learning, creativity, and resilience. At Acton Academy, joy and agency drive self-driven learners to thrive and grow.
Comparing Classical Education and Acton Academy
Compare Classical Education's structured, teacher-led learning with Acton’s learner-driven approach emphasizing real-world skills.
Exploring America: The Roadtrip Across America Quest
The Roadtrip Across America Quest at Acton Academy Columbus was an exciting three-week journey designed to immerse learners in U.S. geography, history, and culture.
Building Empathy: Community Service Projects
Blanket making / Community Service: Empathy grows as learners unite to serve and uplift others.
Marine Science Quest: Learning to Do, Be, and Learn
Immersive learning fosters curiosity, responsibility, and hands-on marine exploration.
Unstructured Play: Lessons from Waldorf Education
Unstructured play in nature fosters creativity, resilience, and holistic growth.
Inside the Spark Studio: The Magic of Creativity and Independence
Where imagination meets independence, the Spark Studio inspires limitless growth.
What leading minds say about the future of education
Education is an ever-changing field, and some of the most-watched TED Talks have inspired us.
Forest Fridays: A Journey into Waldorf-Inspired Learning
Outdoor adventures blending Waldorf principles, experiential learning, and community connection
The Power of Experiential Learning
Field trips transform learning into meaningful, hands-on real-world experiences
Connecting Acton with The 7 Habits of Happy Kids by Sean Covey
How does Acton Academy align with the 7 Habits of Happy Kids by Sean Covey?
2024 STEM / Entrepreneurship Summer Camp
Details about our STEM / Entrepreneurship Summer Camp (July 8 - August 2)
The world is leaving schools behind
It’s not that schools are leaving kids behind. The world is leaving schools behind.
Explore Montessori & Early Childhood Schools in Columbus
List and comparison of Montessori-inspired studios around the Columbus area
The Micorschool Difference
How does the approach at a Microschool differ from a traditional evirnoment?
Sweet Science / Baking Quest
A fun Sweet Science / Baking Quest - see the highlights.
The Hero's Journey
What is the purpose of school? Reimagining education through the lens of the Hero’s Journey.
Neurodiversity in Learner-Driven education
Could learners with neurodiversity excel in a learner-driven environment? A case study.
Self-Directed Learning
Our learners are mastering technical skills without a teacher-led model
Conflict Resolution at Acton Academy
Using a Montessori Peace Table and framework for apologizing are key aspects of conflict resolution
Homeschooling laws for State of Ohio
What are the requirements of homeschooling in Ohio? How can Acton provide families with many of the benefits of homeschooling?
Forest School and Acton Academy similiarities
Forest schools and Acton Academy Columbus - what are the similarities?
Press Release: Introducing our Innovative Full-Day Kindergarten in Dublin, OH
Announcing our full-day kindergarten option combining aspects of Montessori, Reggio Emilia, Waldorf for ages 4.5 - 7
STEM Games for Young Learners
STEM education through activities and boards games is an important part of our approach to learning
Kindergarten at Dublin City Schools
How Kindergarten looks at Dublin City schools and how that compares to Acton’s Spark Studio
Mixed-age classroom concepts around the world
Mixed-age classrooms are natural growth mindset environments
A week at Acton Academy Columbus
Quests, STEM projects, holiday and birthday celebrations, and a whole bunch more…
The movement against grades and homework
A growing number of schools and educators are recognizing the negative impacts of grading
Importance of Unstructured Play Time
Anji play and Waldorf inspired: The importance to daily unstructured outdoor time
STEM Education at Acton
Project-based learning and STEM education are critical aspects of our curriculum
Empowering our Learners
Empowering our Heroes - A note to parents
Project-Based learning (PBL) at Acton Columbus
Project-Based Learning is critical to developing skills for the 21st century.
A Spark Studio combining: Montessori, Reggio Emilia, Waldorf
Our Spark Studio will be inspired by four models of early childhood education
Learner-Driven Education vs. Teacher-Led Model
Comparing Learner-Driven education with a traditional Teacher-Led model
Outdoor Play - Being a Four Seasons school
Acton is a four seasons school, inspired by a key feature of Waldorf education
ChatGPT - What it means for Schools / Education
What will be the potential impact of ChatGPT on education and in schools?
Announcing our Spark (Preschool / Elementary) Studio
Announcing the new Full Day Acton Columbus Preschool / Elementary (Spark) studio.
Celebrating Holidays from around the world
Celebrating Diwali and other world holidays brings light over darkness
Slaying Dragons
Completing Grade Levels in weeks - A self-paced learning success story
Building Executive Functioning Skills
Developing Executive Functioning skills at Acton
Defining our Mantra
Our school mantra: “Heroes do hard things”
STEM Education for ages 6-12 in Columbus, OH
Exploring great STEM activities for young people around Columbus, OH
Is Acton a Waldorf school?
Commonalities, Differences between Acton and a Waldorf School
Entrepreneurship Challenge: Build a Restaurant
Students build a restaurant, sell food, and make real money
STEM Club - Balloon Powered Car
STEM Club: Learning about Physics, Force, Energy and applying that to building a car
Homeschooling in Columbus
Homeschoolers have long understood learner-driven education.
STEM Club Timing Change
New STEM Club hours starting February 27th
2022 Children's Business Fair - Columbus, OH
Announcing the 2022 Children’s Business Fair in Dublin, OH
Enrollment open for Fall 2022
Enrollment for Fall 2022 open for a limited number of spots
STEM Club - Marble Run
Our second STEM Club activity involved engineering a marble run
"Soft Skills" Education in Schools - Columbus, OH
Soft skills are critical skills in the 21st Century
Entrepreneurship at School
Real World Challenges - Entrepreneurship skills
STEM Club Activities - Volcano Day
STEMers at our first STEM Club built a volcano
Schools back to normal in Columbus?
Once omicron is behind us, should schools go back to “normal”?
Motivation
What motivates children to learn? A book review (Drive by Daniel Pink)
Exhibition 3: Ancient Greece Quest
Learners complete Exhibition #3 with activities, games, and Christmas carols
Learning History at Acton
Learning history isn’t about memorizing dates, battles, and names of people.
Coding and Robotics quest
Wrapping up our Coding and Robotics quest with an exhibition
Private Schools Around Columbus, OH
A list of private schools around Columbus, OH
STEM Challenges
The power of self-driven education & real world work stick harder than a scrantron.
What makes Acton different?
What makes Acton truly revolutionary for a 21st century education?
Build the Tribe Quest
At the conclusion of our first quest, our learners signed their Eagle contract.
Our Approach to Covid
Our approach to mitigating Covid risk
IALDS Accreditation
Details about our IALDS accreditation
Children's Business Fair - Dublin, OH
Acton Columbus Children’s Business Fair in Columbus - July 24, 2021
Technology / Screen Time at Acton
How is technology utilized at Acton Columbus? How much screen time do learners typically use?
Differences Between Montessori and Acton Academy
Answering a commonly asked question - What are the main differences between Montessori and Acton Academy?
We have a location!
The Acton Academy Columbus Elementary School will be located at 6543 Commerce Parkway, Dublin, OH 43017.
How do you know you're on a Learner-Driven Campus?
What happens when the founder of Acton Academy visits a network school and encounters a young eagle?
Montessori Schools around Columbus
At Acton, we are strong believers in the Montessori approach to education. Here is a list of Montessori based schools around Columbus.
The Curriculum is the Child
A story of Amelia, Willy the Worm, and why Learner-Driven Education is so important.
Spanish For Ninos - Bilingual Education in Columbus
Spanish for Niños is a bilingual preschool in Columbus, OH owned by Nella Portal.
Help us spread the word!
If you feel as passionate about learner-driven education as I do, help me raise awareness so we can reimagine education for Columbus.
Montessori's 1st Stage of Development: Infancy
Montessori believed it was during this stage that children had 11 different sensitivities.
Book Notes: Mind in the Making
I share my notes from reading Mind in the Making, the Seven Essential Life Skills Every Child Needs.
Montessori in Elementary Schools
How do we bring the principles of Montesorri to Acton Academy?
Soft Skills are Critical Skills for a 21st Century education
In the information age, soft skills such as leadership, communication, research, and teamwork / collaboration, are vital for our children to learn..
Is Homework beneficial? What the Research says
The debate about the value of homework has been ongoing for a century. Here we take a look at what the research tells us.
Inclusive Education
A look at how Henderson School and Akshar School have built an inclusive education system.
A Difficult Decision
I discuss the difficult decision to delay the opening of 360 Academy to 2021.
Ohio Educational Technology Conference (OETC) 2020
Detailing my visit to the OETC 2020 conference held in Columbus, OH from Feb 11th - 13th, 2019.
What is a Waldorf School?
Waldorf schools are largest, independent school network in the world. What makes it unique?
Heroes of Education: Maria Montessori
Columbus Montessori Schools - Heroes of Education - Maria Montessori
Alternative School Options - Columbus, OH
Alternative school options for students in Ohio include Public and Nonpublic Chartered schools, Homeschools and various types of Public District schools.
Columbus Public School Rankings
How are Columbus schools ranked and what does it mean to be highly ranked?
Homeschooling
How can we get the benefits of that homeschooling without the disadvantages?
Education should focus on long term benefits, not short term results.
The goal of education should not be to get a 5 on an AP exam. It should be to develop lifelong skills that will be applied well beyond a child’s school years.
Article: Why Traditional Schooling Can't Prepare Students for the Modern Workplace
The traditional education system doesn't serve the needs of the current generation, much less the demands of the next. To succeed, students must learn not only the three Rs but als
Self-learning and Peer-to-Peer learning are essential in today's collaborative world
Self-Learning and Peer-to-Peer learning are critical in our global society. Developing self-learning and collaborative learning skills lays the foundation for life-long education.
Book Review: Unschooling Rules
Unschooling Rules includes 55 mini-chapters that detail the author’s research ofthe best practices that should be adopted by homeschoolers and unschoolers.
Blended learning is effective
Study after study after study finds that students in blended classrooms outperform those in traditional in-person classes.
Collaborative engagement is critical
Studies have consistently shown that student engagement and collaboration leads to higher achievement. It builds a lifelong skill that leads to enhanced critical thinking and has a
Failure is the key to success
Failure and being wrong is how you learn. Being wrong forces you to learn, to understand the correct way to do things, to not make the same mistakes over and over. So let’s not pun
Every child is a genius
Our students deserve to be seen for their own potential so each one of them can grow into the genius he / she is.
Students learn at their own pace
We have the tools and technology to provide a personalized education to every student. We should do so.
Kids need to move around - tying them to a desk hinders learning
A Maria Montessori principle, now backed up by research, is that students think more freely and creatively when they are able to move around. It's better for their health and physi
Knowledge is a commodity. Applying knowledge is essential.
We have more information at our fingertips today than some of the world’s most powerful computers did just 30 years ago. Knowledge is everywhere. We don’t need to memorize it. We n
Learning is a reward. Schooling is not.
Allow children to learn and grow. Provide them guidance and they will flourish because learning is really enjoyable. What's not enjoyable and hampers learning are tests and grades
Multi-age classrooms are optimal for learning
Another Maria Montesorri principle backed by research is that multi-age classrooms are highly effective for learning. They provide children with opportunities for leadership, elimi
It is critical for schools to nurture a growth mindset in students
Children with a growth mindset are much more likely to succeed. They are continuously looking to improve their skills and get better.
The 4 Cs of education are essential for a 21st century education
The 4 Cs of education (Critical Thinking, Communication, Collaboration, Creativity) are vital in our Innovation age.
Students should be allowed to pursue their own interests
Kids learn best when they are allowed to pursue their own interests. They become creative and actually enjoy learning. When you standardize the curriculum, you get boredom and chil
Fundamentals are critical
The fundamentals of reading, writing and math are critical in our daily lives. Every child must master the fundamentals.
Learn to learn, Learn to do, Learn to be
For a 21st century education, children must learn to learn, learn to be, and learn to do
Learning is Improved in Student-Centered Environments
Education Reimagined - Go beyond the traditional classrooms where boredom persists as students move from lecture to lecture. Focus on the student, not the teacher.
Principles of Education
Acton Academy Columbus - 17 Principles of Education